1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an assembly for the storage and controlled distribution of loosely packed solid products to be distributed preferably unit by unit, where the inviolability and sealed closure of the latter are ensured prior to the first opening by a heat seal.
More particularly, the present invention relates to an assembly for the storage and controlled distribution of loosely packed solid products, preferably to be distributed unit by unit, comprising a container such as a flask, a discharge control device inserted into the neck of the container, an inviolable heat seal that is sealed prior to the first opening and a means for closing the assembly. The kinds of products packed loosely in this way can be, for example, pharmaceutical products such as tablets, dragees, pills, lozenges, pastilles, granules and capsules of all shapes and sizes, whose greatest dimension is either the diameter or the length.
A storage and distribution assembly of this type is designed to avoid several products being discharged unintentionally at once during the use of this kind of packaging by the final user, which is typically a consumer of the products.
2. Description of Related Art
Numerous assemblies comprising containers and discharge control devices having a specifically shaped outlet opening and that fit onto various different types of containers are described in the technical literature, in particular in patent applications and/or published patents.
Thus for example, the document EP 756567 describes a type of packaging designed for medicines that is provided with a system for the distribution of the medicines in tablet form.
A container of this kind for tablets comprises a storage compartment able to hold a specific volume of tablets, the storage compartment being in communication with the exterior of the container via a distribution device and one or more distribution passages comprising one or more distribution openings.
The distribution device can be shaped so as a form an integral part of the body of the container or conversely it can be designed as a separate adapter for the container, being attached to the body of the container to form the packaging. Furthermore, such an adapter can comprise a compartment operating as a storage chamber for a generally pulverulent desiccating agent that protects the tablets contained in the packaging from the ambient humidity of the packaging. A membrane that is porous to humidity retains the pulverulent desiccating agent and enables the humidity contained in the tablets stored in the body of the container and/or the internal humidity present in the container to be absorbed into the desiccating material.
The container equipped with its distribution device, which can be considered to be a discharge control, is closed by means of a stopper. The container and its stopper are designed together to cooperate with one another but are independent from the distribution device.
There are situations however, where the sealed and definitive closure of the container equipped with its discharge control cannot be achieved prior to its first opening in a effective manner by any other technique than heat sealing, that is by means of a heat seal made from a sheet of aluminium coated with polymer film that is able to be sealed by induction onto the only periphery of the neck of the container. This particular situation arises when the container is a type of flask, a small bottle with a large opening or neck, also in the case of a jar.
Sealing by using a peelable aluminium heat seal is a well known technique, which is simple to achieve and has advantages in that its temperature increases rapidly, the sealing temperatures can be controlled, subject to using thermoplastic coatings on the aluminium heat seal with the capacity to adhere onto the surface on which the heat seal is intended to be attached. The sealing surfaces can be very different in nature and made of materials such as glass or plastic. Glass flasks are effectively standard for packaging pharmaceutical products since they are transparent and widely available. However, other plastic materials can also be made into containers, such as flasks or jars, by techniques used in the plastic industry such as injection-blow moulding or extrusion-blow moulding. These are often preferably transparent materials such as polyesters or polycarbonates. Other materials are also possible such as polyethylenes or polypropylenes. The necks of these containers form the sealing surfaces.
By using a peelable heat seal as a means for sealing the container it is possible to achieve an absolute seal prior to the first opening, without having to resort to using separate gaskets and inviolability means, as the sealed and peelable heat seal performs this dual function.
However, once a device for controlling the discharge of the products to be distributed is fitted onto a container it is no longer possible to seal the neck of the container equipped with a distribution device of this kind, since the latter is generally arranged as a superstructure relative to the plane of the neck of the container. Moreover, the discharge control device has to be installed after filling the container at high speed with loosely packed solid products, in particular pharmaceuticals, and prior to the heat sealing of the container, which makes the heat sealing operation unlikely.
It can be observed that the discharge control devices of the prior art that fit onto containers such as flasks or jars do not produce results that are sufficiently satisfactory with regard to their capacity to integrate the heat sealing function by using a sealable heat seal.
For this reason it seems that the conditions for producing a heat seal of this kind with discharge control devices of the prior art are complex and difficult to automatise for mass production required by such packaging systems.